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Saturday, 24 March 2012

There's more to school than just literacy - and this is just what the people at The Family School at Larkhall (off Brixton Hill) feel. The Family School is a small, alternative school "where children are free to be themselves and where learning is a natural part of enjoying and exploring life".I attended the PARENT AND CHILD (UNDER 4s) GROUP which meets on Monday and Thursday mornings each week during term time from
9.45am-11.45am and cost £6 per session per child (siblings under 14
months attend for free) and was very excited to find a wide range of resources including a lovely library of books, musical instruments, a pretend shop, plenty of toys, a lovely outdoor play area and plenty of space to explore. There's also a shoes-off policy (which I am a big advocate of!) and no set activities such as singing so it's great to let little ones play and learn however they wish. It's exciting to know that Lambeth has such a range of different schools on offer - don't forget to also check out The Waldorf School of South West London too for another alternative approach to education!

On Friday the sun was shining and Milo and I decided we had sung Wind The Bobbin Up one too many times and headed somewhere new and wonderful - the Oasis Children's Venture Nature Garden. This is truly an unexpected wildlife Oasis in the heart of the city. We were a little puzzled by how to get in, but finally discovered the lovely brass bell to the left of the gate and finally a very friendly Marisa let us in.

The Nature Garden has so many hidden corners it is very exciting for little ones to explore and is completely safe. There are vegetable patches, a tree-house, scare-crows as well as plenty of woodland and grassy verges perfect for picnics. As Milo is still a crawler he couldn't quite take part in the nest making with clay and straw and preferred to climb up and down the tree-house (which is complete with binoculars for essential birdwatching).

He also enjoyed trying to spot cars and buses through the fence (he adores cars at the moment) but I'm pleased to say it was very hard to catch sight of them as the garden does separate you from the hectic city surroundings! I
soon realised it was impossible for Milo to truly get in the spirit of
the Garden without getting down and dirty so I let him crawl around on
the pathway and he adored putting wood chip into his wheelbarrow and
even having a little nibble now and then (not recommended!).

The Under 5s group is every Friday from 10.30-12 with an optional donation of £1 but I think it's worth every penny !

My Mr. Milo has just had his modelling debut on the wonderful www.latte-mama.com website. Latte-Mama is the lovely kids' clothes company set up by Lambeth Mummy Isra. The clothes are designed in Sweden and are cute, quirky and very affordable so I highly recommend you check out the new Spring/Summer collection. We have this great Marc Cardigan which is certainly unique and stylish - our little man gets comments wherever he goes!